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Ralph and Lucy of NASA are ready to explore the Trojan asteroids of Jupiter, vestiges of the beginnings of our solar system.
But Ralph and Lucy are not astronauts – Ralph is a space instrument that has Lucy as a mission payload or spacecraft that would carry various scientific instruments, including Ralph, to study the properties of asteroids.
The mission will be launched in 2021 and would be the first space mission to study the Trojans ..
Lucy and Ralph head for the Trojan asteroid of Jupiter, but Lucy and Ralph are not astronauts . Ralph is a scientific instrument and Lucy is a mission payload containing several different instruments to measure the properties of asteroids. https://t.co/OvOPc40SYe pic.twitter.com/KJ8EWzl3af
NASA (@NASA) November 7, 2018
About the Trojan Asteroids of Jupiter
The Sun Asteroids are orbit in two loose groups – one group is always ahead of Jupiter (called Greek camp) on its way while the other is always late (called Trojan camp).
The two groups are stabilized at these two points of Lagrange in a balance between the Sun and Jupiter
According to the NASA website, it is thought that all the Trojans are rich in dark carbon compounds. Under an insulating layer of dust, they are probably rich in water and other volatile substances.
Definition of Lagrange Points
Lagrange points are ideal points in a planetary orbit where the force of gravity acting on two opposite celestial bodies is balanced due to the centripetal force of their orbits.
Asteroids of the Inner Solar System and JupiterGreen: Jupiter Trojans, Orange: Hilda Asteroids, White: Asteroid Belt, Blue: Orbits of Planets (Source: NASA.gov)
Trojans asteroids on the planet Jupiter's orbit could be made from the same material as the outer planets formed at the birth of the solar system more than 4 billion years ago.
Thus, the data collected on the Lucy mission could provide essential clues. on the formation of organic molecules in primitive bodies, a process that could also have led to the emergence of life on Earth.
About Lucy's mission to the Trojan asteroids of Jupiter
Lucy's name Name of the fossil of the oldest human ancestor ever discovered. Just as the discovery of this skeleton had helped to better understand human evolution, scientists hope that the Lucy mission will also tell us more about our planetary origins.
The Lucy Mission will feature a 12-year journey with an overflight of seven different asteroids – six Trojan asteroids and an asteroid in the main belt – more than any other previous asteroid mission.
The mission will bring us closer to the two groups of Trojan asteroids.
The orbital trajectory of Lucy. The trajectory of the spacecraft (in green) is indicated in a frame of reference where Jupiter remains motionless. After its launch in October 2021, Lucy has two overflights of the Earth before meeting her Trojan targets. Credits: Southwest Research Institute, NASA
The Lucy Mission payload will explore the Trojan asteroids with the help of:
- Long Range Reconnaissance Imager (L & # 39; LORRI)
- Thermal Emission Spectrometer (L & # 39; TES) [1965] 19659022] The Ralph
LORRI will take high-definition photos of the Trojans, and L & # 39; TES will badyze the heat released by the surface structures of the Trojans
About the scientific instrument of NASA Ralph
- Ralph first launched aboard the spaceship New Horizons in 2006 and gets great images of flyby of Jupiter and its moons
- This visit is followed by a visit to Pluto where Ralph takes the first high-definition images of the iconic minor planet
- The instrument will fly near another object of the call Kuiper belt 2014 MU69 – nicknamed Ultima Thule – in January 2019. The comments of Ralph MU69 2014 will provide a unique insight into this small, icy world [19659022] Given its name and not its acronym Ralph allows the study of the composition and atmospheres of celestial objects
The scientific instrument Ralph of NASA (source: NASA.gov)
The Ralph or Lucy Ralph & # 39; s and its Function in Mission
In 2021, the Lucy spaceship will transport a near-twin of Ralph, named Ralph ("Lucy Ralph"), to investigate the asteroid Trojan Jupiter, NASA In a statement released Wednesday
ALPH will detect the chemical footprints of Trojan asteroids, the statement said. It allows scientists to interpret the data provided by Sun's reflected light which are the fingerprints of different elements and compounds.
The ALPH must have many capabilities in a compact and light body for the spacecraft to remain efficient. and the mission is productive.
Ralph's suite of instruments contains the Visible Imaging Multispectral Camera (MVIC) and the Linear Standard Imaging Spectral Network (LEISA) . A single telescope collects and concentrates the light used in both channels.
This means that Ralph can observe both visible and infrared wavelengths.
These two abilities are what makes Ralph and his cousin so special, according to Dennis Reuter, senior investigator on the instruments for L & # 39; Ralph.
"Most instruments can image visible or infrared wavelengths, but Ralph can do both," Reuter said.
Ralph was originally paired with the Alice Ultraviolet Spectrometer. They were named in honor of married couple Ralph and Alice Kramden from the TV show The Honeymooners'.
As Ralph uses the same concept as Ralph on New Horizons, Reuters said he wants to connect the two. So, Ralph's lineage is born.
Difference Between Ralph and The Ralph
Compared to Ralph who steals with New Horizons, Lucy's film The Ralph improved technology.
It makes it possible to detect a wider spectrum of electromagnetic disturbances. against radiation, it has a moving mirror that reflects light in The Ralph instead of requiring movements of the entire spacecraft.
Ralph's infrared detectors measure 2,000 square pixels, compared to those of New Horizons Ralph 256 x 256, allowing more detailed images.
(With the contributions of PTI and IANS)
Read: 12 new moons discovered around Jupiter and one of them is a "pilot of the wrong direction"
Read: Juno completes a year on the orbit of Jupiter: this is what NASA has found up to now
Read: Jupiter is the most great and oldest planet of the solar system: Study
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